North Cronulla Kiosk follows Joe's Milk Bar into the history books

The shutters will be pulled down for the last time next Sunday, May 16, after more than half a century of selling drinks, ice creams and more recently coffee and light meals to generations of beach-goers.

The old building in which the kiosk is located will be demolished as part of a major redevelopment of North Cronulla Surf Life Saving Club.

The project was to have started by now, but with funding issues and COVID-19, there is no guarantee work will start this year.

Lyn Harvey, who has leased the kiosk for the last 17 years, is not waiting any longer.

"They keep putting [the redevelopment] back," she said.

"They are nowhere near ready to go, but I am.

"I am tired after 24-7 for 17 years, and it's time for a rest.

"COVID has knocked us around a bit and we are not as profitable as we were.

"I have also lost a lot of staff. I had a lot of boys who were university students and they have different jobs now."

Ms Harvey said she would miss her regular customers.

"Its a real community - a lot of the people have been coming since I started," she said.

"I have seen all the kids grow up.

"A big group - The Last Man Standing - have been surfing here since they were kids in the 1960s."

Ms Harvey said the cafe in the redeveloped surf club would be "completely different" to the kiosk.

"It will be more like Zimzala [on Cronulla beach]," she said.

"Closing the kiosk is like the end of an era - old Joe's was from the same era, and now we are going too."

Before Ms Harvey took over, the kiosk opened irregularly.

Ms Harvey worked in for the Department of Veteran Affairs for many years before going into the food industry, in Pasta Pantry.

"My kids did Nippers at North Cronulla and I would look at the kiosk and think, "I can do that'," she said.

"I asked the club, and they finally agreed.

"We put the tables and chairs out the front as soon as we opened, changed the menu and off we went."

Ms Harvey opened on Good Friday 2004. The following year, disaster struck with the Cronulla riot on December 11, 2005.

"We had hardly any customers for a long time," she said. "People just didn't come here, but gradually they returned.

"Now, we get lots of visitors from other areas. On weekends, after lunch, I would say most customers are from the western suburbs."